The director general of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa, has called on a group of international investors in Germany to invest in Nigeria’s tech ecosystem, adding that it is valuable and comes with many rewards.

Talking on the subject; “The Evolution of Nigeria’s Tech Ecosystem”, which was a conversation with Ludwig von Bayern Startup Lions, Germany, CEO said: “Nigeria provides opportunities for entrepreneurs to start and grow businesses quickly and conveniently”.

Inuwa said Nigeria’s future is much brighter than today because of the four comparative advantages the nation has over other countries in the world, adding that these four advantages could hardly be obtained anywhere else in the world.

“There are four comparative advantages that you will never get anywhere else in the world except Nigeria. So come to Nigeria and invest in such a way that you can easily get these comparative advantages,” he said.

Listing the comparative advantages, the NITDA chief informed his audience that Nigeria’s large population and emerging economic status positioned it as a suitable investment destination in Africa.

“Africa is a continent with 54 countries and 1.4 billion people with a GDP of 2.9 trillion. Nigeria alone has 15 percent of the population and GDP, so investing in Nigeria is like investing in Africa. Also, it’s emerging because if you look at the tech ecosystem, Nigeria attracts 30 percent of the FDI foreign direct investment from the continent.

He said that last year alone, Nigeria attracted more than 2 billion dollars.

Inuwa further stated that the level of support the government now provides to the tech ecosystem is unparalleled in the country’s history. He said that the government has been supporting innovation and start-ups. There are so many interventions in terms of policies, laws, and infrastructure to help businesses grow.

He said: “In 2019, the president expanded the mandates of our ministry to cover the digital economy. Before, it was just the Ministry of Communications, but he realized that communication is not the end but a means to an end, while the end is how we can use technology for economic prosperity.”

However, he recalled that the passage of the Nigerian Start-up Act, the Ease of Doing Business Executive Order, including other incentives such as visa on arrival and company incorporation in less than 24 hours, were aimed at transform the country

“Third, we have a young and talented population that you can never get anywhere in the world. While developed countries suffer from aging populations, we have one of the youngest populations in the world,” she observed.

According to him, Nigeria has high potential for social and economic impact and investing in the country would help the country solve the mirage of challenges that beset the nation.

“We have so many challenges that need innovative ways of solving; we have challenges around health, financial inclusion, education, transportation and logistics. And everyone knows that IT or technology can give us faster solutions to solve all these problems,” he added.

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